


A Good Combo

by Annide



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Pizza Place, Bisexual Dean Winchester, Character Death, Demisexual Castiel, Family Drama, Grief/Mourning, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Past Jessica Moore/Sam Winchester, Pizzeria Owner Dean
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-11
Updated: 2014-12-22
Packaged: 2018-02-25 00:54:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,680
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2602571
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Annide/pseuds/Annide
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Castiel meets Dean at a weird time in his life. He just got out of a relationship and, with the death of one of his siblings, he isn't sure if he is ready to jump into another one just yet.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. If You Leave

**Author's Note:**

> Chapter titles are song titles

Castiel was working on a paper for his Roman Empire class when Crowley came home.

                "How was your day?"

                "Great. There was this old woman everyone thought would take forever to make a decision whether she'd buy or not, a huge waste of time for whoever got stuck helping her. But I got on her case anyway and an hour of convincing later she had signed all the papers for her new car and was ready to leave."

                "You have absolutely no morals, but I've got to admit you're very good at what you do. You're not renowned best salesman in the state for nothing."

                "I certainly aren't. What were you thinking for dinner? Because Abaddon told me about this pizzeria she found that's apparently excellent. Dean's, I think it's called."

                "Sounds good. Just give me ten minutes to finish this and we can go."

                They ended up leaving over an hour later. This wasn't unusual. They never went anywhere at the time they planned. Castiel was passionate and often kept going longer than he said, it was impossible to stop him once he started on something. At first, Crowley loved that about him, it was beautiful to see the passion in his eyes and hear him talk endlessly about a subject. But Crowley was an impatient man and he hated waiting. He got angry all the time about it now and they would get into fights because he wasn't exactly reliable either. He cancelled plans at the last minute or simply didn't show up, leaving Castiel to wait, worried something might've happened. They got on each other's nerves almost on an everyday basis. Crowley couldn't stand the mess of books all over the apartment and Castiel had had enough of his boyfriend's coworkers calling all the time; evenings and weekends were supposed to be a time to relax after all. Those were only a few of the things they had trouble with. To be honest, both were scared this relationship might not make it to the end of the year.

                The pizzeria wasn't very far but Crowley insisted they drove there anyway. He hated walking places, especially since he had a brand new car. It was just as well though, because it started snowing not so long after they left. First snow of the season. Crowley turned his head so he could look at Castiel's marvel at the sight of those tiny white flakes falling from the sky. He could still remember the first time he saw that spark in those bright blue eyes.

                It was just over three years ago, when they had just started dating. Crowley was throwing a Halloween party at his place and Castiel set foot in the apartment for the first time. The moment happened when the blue eyes got sight of the bookshelf. Castiel stopped talking mid-sentence and, after a second or two of taking it all in, he started rambling about the beauty of all those old books and how extraordinary it was that the other man possessed so many. Maybe it was the sight of the dark-haired blue-eyed man dressed as an angel just forgetting all about the party to look at books, maybe it was that Castiel had so much to say about them and their history, but, whatever it was, this was the moment Crowley really fell in love with him. Now, seeing the same awed expression on his passenger's face, he was reminded of it and forgot he'd been angry only minutes earlier.

                Crowley parked as closed to the entrance as he could and they ran inside, trying their best to avoid the cold. Neither of them had thought to look at the weather before and they were slightly underdressed for snow. They didn't think it mattered though because, after all, they were only outside for a couple of seconds the time to get from the car to the pizzeria, and just as little time later, when they'd get home.

                They sat at a table in a corner and a handsome green-eyed man wearing an apron came to welcome them. Seeing them both looking like they were freezing and noticing the small jackets they had on, he started laughing.

                "You two aren't afraid of the cold."

                "November just started, we didn't think it would snow tonight yet." Castiel answered.

                "Don't you ever watch the weather forecast on the news? They've been talking about it for days."

                "Well, we weren't outside long and it's not very polite of you to laugh at us like that."

                "Okay, you're right, I'm sorry. I'm Dean, I'll be the one serving you tonight. Would you like to start with something to drink?"

                "Yes, we'd like sodas, please." Crowley liked to take charge of ordering.

                "Perfect, I'll let you look at our choices of meals and I'll be back in a moment." Dean handed them menus and went back to the kitchen.

                "This place seems nice, don't you think?" Castiel asked.

                "Yes. Small though, it looks like our server might also be the cook."

                "What's wrong with that?"

                "Nothing. It just lacks in professionalism, that's all. Don't you think a person who does only one or the other would be better?"

                "I don't know, I don't think it's a problem."

                "What I mean is, I think his food could be better if he concentrated on that."

                "You haven't even tasted his food yet, maybe it'll be the best pizza you'll ever eat, just wait."

                "Maybe it will be, but maybe it won't."

                "Well, we'll have to see for ourselves. You should stop making snap judgements like that."

                They were interrupted by Crowley's ringtone. To Castiel's exasperation, he answered it. It was work, no surprise there, they had trouble with some document and needed Crowley there to help them.

                "I have to go back to the dealership."

                "Now? But you were just there. We're having dinner, tell them you can't."

                "Darling, I'm just on the edge of getting promoted. I have to show them I can be there when they need me. Let's go, I'll leave you home on my way."

                "I don't want to go home, I want to try out this pizzeria."

                "We'll come back another time. Tomorrow maybe."

                "No. You're the one who has to go, you come back another time, I'm staying."

                "How will you get home?"

                "I'll walk."                                    

                "It's freezing outside, you can't walk in this weather."

                "I don't care, I'll figure it out. I'll call a cab."

                "Fine, do what you want, but I'm not coming back here for you."

                "I'm not asking you to."

                Crowley let out a sigh, gave Castiel a kiss and left. Dean got back with their sodas and ready to take their order not two minutes later.

                "You look upset."

                "I'm fine."

                "Where did your friend go?"

                "Boyfriend. He had a work emergency."

                "Oh, that's too bad. Is he a doctor or something like that?"

                "He's manager of sales in a car dealership."

                "What kind of work emergency could he have with a job like that?"

                "You know, you really shouldn't intrude in people's personal life like that."

                "Oh sorry, I don't usually do that, I don't know, you just seemed like you needed to talk."

                "I don't, so will you take my order now?"

                "Sure, go ahead." Dean replied, with such a shit-eating grin that Castiel lost his thought for a second. The green-eyed man waited patiently for him to order, as if none of the other customers mattered as much as he did.

                Dean brought his pizza half an hour later, then left him alone to take care of everyone else. Castiel had never liked Abaddon, but she was right about the food here, it was delicious. He made sure to compliment Dean as soon as he got the chance.

                Later, when there were no more customers in the pizzeria, Dean came by again.

                "Did you want something else or were you planning on spending the night just sitting here?"

                "Do you want me to leave?"

                "No, it's fine, take your time, I'll just clean up. Give me a sign if you need anything."

                "I think I'd like some coffee. Please."

                "Okay, coming right up."

                A few minutes later, Dean came back and sat across from Castiel. Most of the chairs had been put up on the tables, the floor had been cleaned and it basically looked like he had nothing to do other than wait for closing time.

                "So, not that it's weird or that I was paying any particular attention to you or anything, but you ate all your pizza a while ago and you haven't ordered more coffee even though yours is empty, seems like you're done here."

                "Oh, yeah, looks like it." Castiel said, having no idea what more to add to that.

                "I noticed your boyfriend left with a car I'm assuming you both came in? Again, I wasn't creeping, I just see things. So, are you just staying in hoping the snow will calm down? Cause , as I said earlier, I watched the weather forecast and they said it would last til morning."

                "Really? Well, I better go then."

                Castiel put on his coat and stood up reluctantly, clearly not liking the idea of leaving the warmth of the restaurant.

                "What, you'll walk?"

                "I don't live very far." He had noticed earlier, when paying for the food, that he didn't have any money left for a taxi.

                "Maybe, but I can't let you go out in this weather, you'll freeze to death. Let me drive you."

                "I couldn't, I don't want to bother-"

                "Don't worry, it's really no problem. I'm done here anyway. There hasn't been any customers for hours and I doubt anyone'll show up. I'll just close up."

                "Won't it bother your boss? I mean, if you leave before closing time?"

                "Oh no, I own this place. I'm my own boss and I say it's alright for me to make sure a customer makes it home alive, you know, it's only good business, so you'll come back."

                "Sure. Well, okay then. Thank you."

                "You're welcome."

                Dean locked the door and closed all the lights. Castiel followed him around back to an old model car, a classic maybe, he really didn't know anything about cars.

                "Impala '67. Inherited it from my dad." Dean said in answer to his passenger's look of wonder.

                "Looks great, just like it's new."

                "Yeah, I take good care of Baby here."

                Castiel could see the pride in the green eyes. It was a beautiful thing really. He wondered when was the last time he saw Crowley pride himself in anything, had he even ever seen it?

                Dean drove well. Carefully, but not obsessively so. It felt relaxed, like driving came naturally to the pizza man. Castiel gave him directions as needed and they were there in a few short minutes. Crowley was waiting on the living room couch when he got in.

                "Where the hell have you been all night?"

                "At the pizzeria where you left me, remember?"

                "I only left you there cause you didn't want to come home."

                "I wanted you to stay."

                "I already told you I couldn't, Castiel. When will you understand? I have a paying job. I'm about to get an important promotion, I can't just blow them out to hang out with my boyfriend."

                "You spend all your time there! We almost never see each other anymore. You are allowed to have a life outside of work too, you know."  

                "See, that's the problem with you. You don't work, so you don't get it. This dealership is my life, Castiel. If I play it right, I might own it someday. But it needs hard work and a lot of hours put into it."

                "Why do you even bother with me, then? This is clearly more important to you. You should just stop wasting time on a stupid relationship, since it's getting in the way of your dream job so much!"

                "Our relationship isn't stupid, Castiel, I love you. I just have more important projects at the moment, but it will get better soon, I promise. When I get that promotion."

                "You always say that, but there'll be another promotion and you'll keep working day and night, week and weekends. I know you love me, but sometimes it's just not enough. You need to make time for me. Why don't you save one night a week just for me? One night, that's all I ask."

                "Castiel, I can't."

                "Then why are we doing this?"


	2. When You're Gone

                When Castiel woke up the next morning, the apartment was empty. He found a note from Crowley saying he went to the dealership. Probably to avoid the awkwardness of a Saturday morning with nothing to look ahead to except hanging out at home with the person you love who also happened to have dumped you just the night before. Yes, Castiel could understand why his now ex-boyfriend got up unusually early to go to work on his day off. Not that Crowley never went to the dealership on Saturdays, but he usually waited until he got a call in the afternoon.

                Castiel always found the few days after a break up weird. Suddenly, you thought up every routine thing, trying to figure out if you might run into your ex. You dreaded seeing that person because you never knew how to act around them. Should you ignore them completely or share an awkward hello? And this particular break up was especially difficult as they shared an apartment. Castiel had nowhere else to go and, even though he moved to the guest bedroom until he could find a new place, he still had to go to the kitchen every once in a while.

                The first few weeks felt like years. They both tried to spend as little time as possible in the apartment, they needed to get used to a new rhythm of life and new routines. Seeing the pain in the other's eyes was also a thing they wanted to avoid at all costs. Because they did love each other and they still felt it. They were just too different for their relationship to work. There were too many issues they would've needed to work on. Crowley's repeated absences had been what pushed them over the edge, but it was only one of many problems they had.

                Castiel hated being alone. It gave him too much time to think about their relationship. They had been together for three years. They had come a long way. He could still remember that dinner for their first Valentine's Day. It was the night they really discussed their sexual orientations for the first time. They were both so nervous to bring it up. Castiel's demisexuality had been mentioned before, you couldn't be in a couple with someone for four months without the subject of having sex coming up, but they hadn't spent much time talking about it. It happened that night, after a shaking Crowley, Castiel had never seen him like that before and never did again, announced his pansexuality. The car salesman had been scared of his boyfriend's reaction, but all he got from Castiel was understanding. And now, years later, they both had to grieve this relationship and face the possibility that other people they'll date in the future might not be so accepting of their sexual orientations.

                By some miracle, Castiel managed to get a dorm room for the winter semester. Many calls were required, but in the end, they accepted to give him the place a drop-out had left. He had to share with another student, but he really didn't mind. It was better than still living with his ex. The past two months had been rough, especially after Abaddon started hanging out there all the time. She was Crowley's rebound, and this choice really didn't surprise Castiel. Both were good friends and she'd been into Crowley since he started working at the dealership. Castiel had considered moving in with one of his siblings or even his parents, but neither lived in an area that was convenient to take the bus to the university. It made the commute hell if, like Castiel, you didn't own a car.

                Castiel spent the holidays at home. The house, more like a mansion, was crowded like it hadn't been in a long time. All five Shurley kids were there and some of their cousins occupied the guest rooms. At 21 years old, Castiel was the youngest child in the extended family, the baby as Luke liked to say. Being there, with all those people, was a great distraction. Not a day ever passed without Michael and Luke getting in an argument over just about anything, Gabriel and Balthazar enjoyed being reunited as the infamous prankster cousins with Raphael as their main target, Gadreel spent most of the time reading and Castiel couldn't be happier to get a chance to catch up with Anna. It was a great two weeks, like they were all living outside of their real lives for just a little while.

                When he got back from Christmas break and moved in to his dorm room, his roommate wasn't there. Probably still on vacation since he was already all set there and had no reason to get back early. Castiel enjoyed the emptiness of the building. The low amount of people there made it easier for him and Gabriel to go back and forth through the corridors and stairs with his stuff. Unpacking only took a few hours after which they had lunch and Castiel had to push his brother out of the room before he could start snooping in the roommate's things. Gabriel really had no respect for privacy.

                "Oh come on, bro, you're telling me you're not just a thinsy bit curious to know who you'll be living with for the next couple months?"

                "I like getting to know people by actually talking to them. I'll learn all I need to know when this Benny comes back in two days. Goodbye, Gabriel."

                "Was nice seeing you."            

                Gabriel gave him one of his typical playful smiles and left. Castiel finished putting order in some of his things and then, since he had to eat, he decided to go back to this pizzeria he visited months ago. He remembered the food being excellent and he thought it would be a shame to miss out on it just because he associated it with the break up. He had to get over those bad memories and create new ones there, tonight was just as good as any.

                There were more people than when he first went, but the pizzeria hadn't changed otherwise. He took a seat by the window and was lost in his thoughts by the time Dean's voice pulled him back into reality.

                "Hey, look who finally came back! I thought you'd completely forgotten about this place. It must've been months."

                "Yeah. I'm sorry, I wanted to get another taste of your pizza, but I've been really busy."

                His eyes fell to the table at the lie. It was so obvious, no way Dean hadn't noticed. Plus, he knew he'd been with his boyfriend last time so certainly he would ask why he was alone this time. Or so Castiel thought, but when he looked up again, Dean was smiling. There was concern and questions in those beautiful green eyes, but none of that ever made it out of the pizza man's mouth.

                It became a habit. At first, Castiel had dinner at Dean's pizzeria alone once a week. And then one time he decided to invite Benny, his roommate, to go with him. After that the both of them started hanging out there all the time. They would spend the afternoon there writing papers usually due the next day or they just went for a meal after a long day and they ended out leaving at the same time Dean did himself. The three of them became good friends. Castiel was happy. He stopped thinking about Crowley so much, only every once in a while when something reminded him of his ex and never in a painful way. He had enjoyed his time with him, but now it was over, he was starting a new time in his life and he was perfectly okay with it. He had moved on.

                And there the following months went, peacefully, everyone settled into a new routine. Much so that everyone knew where to find Castiel if he was neither in class nor in his dorm, where to be honest he only ever went to sleep. This is how, one morning in early March, Luke showed up at the pizzeria. Benny and Castiel were just starting breakfast when he joined them at their usual table.

                "Brother, there you are."

                "Luke, what are you doing here?"

                "That's not how you greet family, why don't you introduce me to your friends?"

                Castiel let out a sigh and turned to the others.

                "Benny, Dean, this is one of my siblings, Luke. Luke, this is Benny, my roommate, and Dean, he owns this place."

                "Nice to meet you all, glad my baby brother made friends and doesn't stay locked up in his room all the time. But Luke isn't actually my name, that's just short for the one my parents gave me. I don't know why they even bothered, no one ever uses it. Anyway-"

                "What are you doing here, Luke?"

                Castiel interrupted. Not for any particular reason, he was simply really curious to know. He did regret the interruption a minute later, when he realized Luke had been about to reveal his full name to his friends, and himself by default. Because, yes, Castiel had no idea what his own brother's actual name was. By the time he was born, everyone in the family had already settled into the habit of calling him Luke all the time and somehow the youngest ones, Castiel and Balthazar, ended up never knowing.

                "Oh what, now I can't visit my favourite sibling just for the sake of it? I missed you. I haven't seen you since Christmas."

                "I have school and no car, I can't just come over anytime."

                "I understand that, but you know what you could do? Pick up the phone and call, I'll be happy to pick you up whenever. I'm bored always alone in my apartment."

                "Nothing stops you from calling me yourself, or you know, any of our other siblings."

                "Showing up unexpectedly is just a lot more fun."

                "I don't mean to interrupt, but how many siblings do you have?"

                Benny asked and Castiel wondered how the subject never really came up. They all made comments in passing about their family, but they didn't actually talked about it.

                "Four. We're all boys, except for Raphael who's gender fluid."

                Castiel answered. He nervously looked for a reaction from his friends, like the ones he usually got when he talked about this, but they didn't seem to mind. He found himself stupid for even worrying, they were a nice accepting group. They had talked about sexual orientation at some point and it turned out both Dean and Benny were bisexuals.

                After that, the conversation went from subject to subject and somehow they all spent the entire day there. Castiel and Benny didn't get any work done, but everyone had a good time hanging out with Luke.

                The remaining of the semester went the same way it had begun. There was the occasional visit from Luke, who really just wanted to make sure his baby brother was doing fine, but otherwise nothing changed and it was perfect this way.

                It happened in early June. Castiel was sleeping in the new apartment he got with Benny, because they both intended to stay the summer and why not keep living together for the next year. His phone rang somewhere past midnight and Castiel's room was so dark it took him a while to find it.

                "Yeah?"

                "Castiel? Were you sleeping? Of course you were, I should've waited til morning to call you. I didn't know what else to do. I mean, what do you do in this situation? Do you call right away or do you wait, I don't know! It's not like anything like this ever happened before. And your parents are there crying and all they've said to me since we got the news is that they wanted me to call everyone. But they didn't say when exactly and I have no idea if this is okay. This is hard, Castiel. Maybe I should let you sleep, bad news can wait for the sun to rise, right?"

                "Anna, what's going on?"

                "Your brother and I, we went to a concert and we were on our way back and we were crossing the street and there was this car that came out of nowhere and I couldn't see it cause it was behind me, but he did and he pushed me out of the way at the last minute, but he couldn't move away in time. He got hit and now he's gone, Castiel. Dead. We can never hear his wonderful laugh again, he has such a great laugh."

                Castiel had a pretty good idea who she meant, but he had to be sure.

                "Who died, Anna? Which of my brothers were you hanging out with tonight?"

                "Gabriel."

                He dropped his phone. He couldn't believe what he'd just heard. Gabriel could not be dead. Gabriel was life incarnated. He was the one who brought joy to family gatherings when everyone started fighting. He was the one who got along with everyone. He was the fun sibling, the prankster, the one you could always count on to cheer you up when you were sad. How could Gabriel be dead?

                Castiel picked up his phone from the floor. He had to say something.

                "Anna?"

                "Yeah, Castiel?"

                "Tell me where you are, I'm coming. We can figure it out together."

                "I love you, cousin."

                "Love you too."

                The funeral was held a week later at his parents' house. The sun was shining brightly and it reminded Castiel of Gabriel's personality. He thought it was appropriate. His brother was really popular and a lot of people came. Castiel didn't know most of them and so he was surprised to hear a familiar voice in the midst of all those strangers.

                "Your friends have got to stop dying, Sam. This is the second funeral we've attended this year. What are you, cursed or something? Should I stop hanging out with you? You know, just to be safe."

                "This isn't funny, Dean. I just lost someone, again."

                "I know, I know, I was just trying to lighten the mood a little. These things are just so depressing."

                "They're supposed to be. It's about saying goodbye to a loved one." Castiel said as he approached them, Balthazar behind him.

                "Castiel, I didn't expect to see you here."

                "Neither did I. Gabriel was my brother, I think I mentioned him a couple times. What are _you_ doing here, Dean?"

                "My own brother, Sammy here, was a friend of Gabriel. My condolences, by the way."

                "Oh yeah, thanks."

                "I can't imagine how you're doing right now, I'd be a mess if I ever lost Sam."

                "It's hard, really, I don't know what I'm supposed to do, I just can't believe he's gone."

                "Gabe and Cassie were close. They're my uncle's youngest kids so it drove them together. Like me. I was born less than a year after Gabe, we were like best friends. I'm Balthazar by the way."

                "Oh yeah, I think I've seen you around Gabriel's comic book store." Sam replied. "What's gonna happen with that, by the way, do you know?"

                "I co-own it, so now I guess it's all mine now. It'll be weird without him there."

                Castiel noticed tears in Balthazar's eyes. Neither of them was able to talk about Gabriel without emotion getting in the way and they'd basically avoided staying still all day, they were just moving around exchanging condolences, not letting time to any conversation to really start. Until this very moment.

                They all hung out together for the rest of the day. Crowley came by to give condolences to Castiel early in the evening, but he didn't stay long. After that, Sam and Balthazar went off on their own, Castiel thought his brother probably just wanted to leave him with Dean. Since Luke met his friends, all his siblings had this thing where they would ask whether he liked any of them and, though he didn't say anything, they all somehow figured out he might have a little thing for Dean, which he didn't.

                "Was your ex boyfriend flirting with me?" Dean said once they were alone.

                "Yes. He does that with all the attractive people."

                "But you were right there."

                "He doesn't care."

                "He should. This was disrespectful and you deserve better."

                "Good thing I broke up with him then."

                They sat in a corner and talked until Castiel's parents came by.

                "We're sending everyone home, we're exhausted. Will you stay here tonight or you're going back to your apartment?" His mother asked.

                "I'm leaving."

                "Hi," Castiel's father spoke, turning to Dean. "Sorry about this, we're a little out of it, you understand. I'm Chuck. This is my wife, Eve. Did you come just to support Castiel or did you know Gabriel?"

                "I came with my brother, he knew your son well from his store. I didn't make the connection with Cas until I got here and saw him."

                Castiel turned to Dean, his heart suddenly beating fast. Nobody had ever used a shortened version of his name except for Balthazar. Actually, Luke was the only one in the family who wasn't referred to by his full name. Did Dean using "Cas" mean anything or was it just something he did? Castiel thought he might be getting himself excited over nothing and in that precise moment he realized he had been lying to himself. He did like Dean. A lot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have no idea why every time I mention Gabriel in a fic he's dead or ends up dead, I swear I love him.


	3. Way Down

                Benny didn't understand why Cas and Dean hadn't gone out yet. He was getting really tired of the endless eye-fucking that led nowhere. He spent most of his time with them and they were both great friends, though Castiel and him did get in fights every once in a while, but it was only normal what with living together and all. There were so many hours during which Benny had witnessed the both of them sharing looks across the room or coming to each other's rescue when their siblings were being pains. He was glad to be a single child every time Luke, Raphael or Sam visited. But he did enjoy the fact that all three of them agreed with him. Why wouldn't Dean and Castiel become a couple already?

                There was no reason for them not to. They were clearly in love with each other and it couldn't be about Castiel having recently gotten out of a relationship. It had been months, eight to be exact, and it was entirely in the past. His roommate never mentioned his ex boyfriend anymore and Crowley had moved on by now. The car salesman had dumped his rebound in the beginning of the year and had been dating a new guy for almost six months. They'd learn all this because, as it turned out, Crowley's little sister, Ruby, was a friend of Dean's brother, Sam, small world indeed. Dean had heard the kids talk about the relationship one night. Apparently, Crowley had heard about the guy before and thought he sounded horrible. But when he came to buy a car, they got to talking and it turned out they had a lot in common. According to Ruby, her brother had never been happier. Dean had told Cas and Benny the story the next day. Castiel hadn't seem to care at all and didn't even ask for a name. Benny did though, but Dean hadn't caught it in the conversation he'd spy on. Obviously, you show a lot of interest in the lives of all of your friends' exes, that didn't mean anything, or so Dean replied when Benny confronted him about it.

                Benny had this idea to bring his girlfriend to dinner one night, make it seem almost like a double date, just to prompt something to finally happen between his friends. The four of them had fun together. Cas and Dean seemed to like Lenore. It was a great night and it was going so well. Benny was finally able to introduce his girlfriend to the guys he spent most of his time with. Dean had closed the pizzeria for the night so he was able to sit down with them without being interrupted by clients every five minutes. Castiel sat too close to Dean, getting himself a complaint about personal space to which he replied that he wasn't good with all the social norms like that and all. Benny would've believed it if it wasn't for the fact that his roommate only seemed to forget about those things around Dean. But he pretended not to see right through the lie the same way the pizza man made a case to look bothered by the intrusion of personal space. He was obvious, only stating a complaint and stopping there even though Castiel didn't move an inch away. Yes, Benny couldn't help noticing those things, they were his best friends after all.

                Benny thought he could leave with Lenore and Cas and Dean would stay there and, maybe, their good mood would lead to something, like a revelation. What could he say, he was a romantic guy, and way too hopeful. However, when they saw each other again the next day, neither of them had made a move and they were still at the same point of shamelessly flirting while denying their interest in one another.

                What Benny didn't know is that Castiel feared being asked out by Dean, despite really wanting him to do it, because he had been such a mess since Gabriel died and he didn't think dating was a good idea at the moment. How could he manage a relationship when he couldn't even remember to do things as basic as eating? His only meals consisted of whatever food Dean brought him, even though he never asked for anything.

                "Here, eat something. I don't want you to starve to death. Especially in my pizzeria. Who would want to eat in a restaurant where someone died of hunger?"

                That's what Dean said as he put a slice of pizza in front of Castiel a few days after the funeral. Since then, the pizzeria owner always brought him something as soon as he set foot in the restaurant and never charged him any money for it. Two months later, Castiel had tasted everything on the menu.

                Fall was approaching and a new semester would start soon. Dean and Benny worried about Castiel. Forcing him out of bed and dragging him to the pizzeria everyday all summer long hadn't been easy. Castiel had spent days following Gabriel's funeral lying in bed, not even getting up to eat or anything, and seemed intent on keeping that up until Benny decided to get him out of the apartment. It seemed to help. After a week or so of going to the pizzeria, Castiel had started showering again. They managed to get him settled into a routine. Benny thought it might be best for his roommate to take the semester off, just this one, just to have some more time to deal with this. Dean thought getting back out there and doing things would only help Castiel. After all, he'd had the entire summer and they hadn't seen that much progress, something needed to change. Of course, only Castiel could make that decision and what finally woke him up from the state he'd been in happened about a week before the start of the semester. Luke was visiting for the first time in months. Apparently, he had been staying away from everyone and only came back to the pizzeria because he ran into Sam who dragged him there.

                "Hey, a revenant! Where have you been?" Benny inquired as the blonde man entered the restaurant.

                "Around. Mostly avoiding my family."

                "Why? One of your siblings just died, shouldn't you all stick together?"

                Dean valued family greatly and believed that being part of one meant you all had each other's back. He'd tried to convince Castiel to go home to his parents, mentioning it regularly through the summer, but without any success.

                "He had a big fight with our older brother. It was a mess, dad threw him out." Castiel offered.

                "And Castiel took my side."

                "I didn't take any side, I just disagreed with them, I'm staying out of it."

                "Oh yeah? How's that working out for you? You know they'll show up eventually if you don't take their calls, right? Why don't you come on a trip around the world with me? We'd have fun, we could even bring some of your friends along with us. Come on, I'm bored, I need to do something."

                "Actually, Cas, I don't think it's such a bad idea. Getting away from here for a couple of weeks could be good for you. I used to travel a lot and home always felt so much better after a while. It changes your perspective on things."

                Benny had a point, but Castiel couldn't stand everyone making decisions for him, treating him like he couldn't do anything by himself. He'd let his friends try to help him all summer and he appreciated it, he was however growing quite tired of it.

                "I don't want to go anywhere! I just want to be alone. Why can't any of you just give me some space to deal with this on my own? I don't need any of you to take care of me."

                Castiel rose from his chair as he yelled at them.

                "None of you know better than me what to do in this situation. I just lost a brother! I will deal with this how I think is best for myself. I'm going home now. Benny, you can stay at Lenore's, I don't want to see any of you until I say so, alright?"

                And then he left the pizzeria. Dean wanted to go after him, but Sam grabbed his arm and told him to let him go, Castiel would come back when he'd be ready. When Benny went by the apartment to get some of his stuff, his roommate was taking a shower. Neither of them saw Castiel for an entire week. Then, the day before the start of term, he showed up for dinner at the pizzeria like no time had passed. He seemed to be doing better and was ready to go back to his studies.

                The first half of the semester went smoothly. Castiel was slowly adjusting to a world where Gabriel didn't exist. When Dean threw a Halloween party at the pizzeria, Castiel even accepted to go and both of them with Benny dressed up as the three musketeers. A lot of people went, most he didn't know, but Balthazar showed up, which was nice cause they hadn't seen each other in a while. It seemed the cousin had been spending most of his time either taking care of the comic book store he'd become the sole owner of, or hanging out with Sam when he could get him away from Ruby.

                "Where is Sam, by the way? I haven't seen him here yet." Castiel inquired.

                "Oh, I don't know. Probably out doing God knows what with his girlfriend. My brother's vulnerable right now, after losing Jess and Gabriel, and this Ruby girl is taking advantage of it. Did I mention he's doing drugs now?"

                Dean looked exhausted. It couldn't be easy for him. A 21 year old man, owner of a pizzeria that was quickly growing popular, having to raise his little brother. Sam was 17 and was starting his senior year of high school. He'd been hoping to get a scholarship into college, but with the dark path he'd fallen on recently, Dean often expressed worries that it wouldn't happen. He refused to hire help for the restaurant and worked overtime seven days a week to make sure he'd manage to pay for Sam's studies, just in case. The size of the bags under the beautiful green eyes pained Castiel to see.

                "Do you want me to talk to Crowley? Ruby's his sister, maybe he could do something, like have a discussion with her about it. My siblings never listen to me, but every family's different, he might have an influence on her."

                They all turned to Luke, confused, when he mentioned Crowley.

                "Why would you suggest that? I mean, wouldn't that be weird if you went to him with that? It'd be if I did." Castiel started, but when his brother suddenly looked uncomfortable, he became suspicious. "Wait... are you dating my ex boyfriend?"

                "This really wasn't how I had planned for you to learn about it, but yeah."

                Castiel went silent. Dean, Benny, Lenore and Balthazar were all incredulous too. The situation was kind of awkward and, Luke being Luke, he only made the whole thing worse.

                "If it can make you feel better, you dumped him. Which is great if you ask me, cause all his talent in bed was totally wasted on you. I mean, I completely support your sexuality, but god am I grateful you let that one go, free for me to enjoy."

                "You're a jerk, Luke!"

                Castiel stormed out and, this time, Dean caught up with him outside.

                "Are you okay? I know you're angry and it's normal, but are you okay?"

                Castiel looked up at him and seeing concern in the green eyes seemed to soothe him.

                "Yeah, I think so. I was just taken by surprise I guess, but I'll be okay."

                "Good. I couldn't stand the idea of that dick ruining how well you've been doing."

                "Really?"

                "Yeah, I worry about you."

                "I'm sorry."

                "What? No, don't be. I just mean that I care about you, you know? I'm there for you, whatever you need."

                "Oh, well thanks."

                "Hey, that's okay, come here."

                Dean pulled Castiel into a tight hug just as tears started to form in the deep blue eyes.


	4. Fooled Around And Fell In Love

                Castiel didn't have classes on Wednesdays and he really enjoyed sleeping until noon, then meeting Benny for lunch at the pizzeria. In fact, this time to sleep in he had in the middle of the week was his favourite thing about his schedule. It allowed him to rest and be ready to take on the second half of the week. He cherished those moments dearly. Which is why he wasn't pleased to be awaken by his phone ringing at 9 am on a Wednesday morning. It also panicked him, because everyone knew he slept in those mornings, so it had to be important. Plus, people usually texted him, knowing he didn't like talking on the phone, and the last time he actually got a call was Anna announcing him Gabriel's death.

                "Dean? Why are you calling me? What's going on?"

                He answered after checking caller id, his voice strained from slumber.

                "Dear Mr Winchester, please accept this formal invitation to the Shurley family Thanksgiving dinner celebration. We are aware this day is to be spent with family and you are welcome to invite as many family members as you like. Please fill the response card and send it back promptly. With regards, Chuck and Eve Shurley."

                Dean somehow managed to keep calm through reading all of this, though Castiel could hear the panic hiding behind.

                "Cas, what is this?"

                "Sounds like one of those fancy invitations my parents send to people when they want them to join us for something."

                "I know what an invitation is, Cas, what does it mean?"

                "That they think you are a friend and they'd like you to come to thanksgiving? What do you want me to tell you, Dean?"

                "What am I supposed to do with that?"

                "Talk to your family, see if you want to come, then send back an answer. Have you never gotten one of these before?"

                "No. I'm not from a rich family. But, you'll be there, right? And do you want me to go?"

                "Yeah, of course, it'd be fun to have friends there for once."

                "So, I should send back that I'll be there?"

                "What about your family? Don't you spend thanksgiving with them? Shouldn't you talk to them to know if they want to go before you answer?"

                "You mean, I should invite them? They actually meant that? They don't even know how big my family is!"

                "You've seen my parents' house. They don't have any problem feeding a lot of people for thanksgiving, they just need to know how many so there's enough for everyone."

                "So, if I say we'll be five people, that's okay?"

                "If five people is how many members of your family you have and usually spend thanksgiving with, yeah. Don't leave out anyone thinking it would be too much trouble, trust me, it won't be."

                "You sure five isn't too many?"

                "Dean, until recently I had four siblings. You can invite all of your people, I swear, it's completely fine."

                "Alright then. Sorry I woke you up."

                Benny had been invited to the Shurleys too, but he was spending it with Lenore's family. Castiel was always nervous to be around so many people, but this year was different. Dean and his family would be there. They still weren't dating, but Castiel hoped they would be eventually, when he'd be ready, so he really wanted to make a good impression. At this point, they both knew they had feelings for each other. Dean was being patient. He kept to flirting, respecting the fact that Castiel needed time to get himself together after the loss of his brother. And Castiel was grateful for that. There was no pressure. He could take all the time he wanted to make sure he really was back on his feet and Dean would still be there.

                Thanksgiving came two weeks after the phone call. Castiel was ready to leave for the lunch they had just the seven, now six, of them and the five Miltons before the big reception when his phone rang. It could only be one person, only one person he knew called him because his hatred of texting was apparently bigger than Castiel's for calls.

                "Hello, Dean."

                "Hey, Cas. I was wondering, cause I was just working on my car and it came to me that you don't have one, how are you getting there this afternoon? Cause I can give you a ride if you need."

                "Nice of you to offer, but Raphael's picking me up on hir way. Ze's actually waiting for me right now and ze's pretty impatient, so I really have to go, but I'll see you later."

                "Yeah, okay, see you later."

                Castiel hung up and joined Raphael in the car.

                "What took you so long? I thought I told you to be ready on time."

                "Dean called to ask if I needed a ride."

                "But mom said he RSVP'd for five. How would he have fit you in the car with all of them?"

                "I don't know, I didn't ask."

                "Why not? It's a valid question."

                "And I'm sure you would've been delighted to wait while I had this conversation with him."

                "You didn't tell him that about me, I hope."

                "Well, I had to explain why I cut the call short."

                "You can't say whatever you want about people, Castiel. Making good impressions is very important, now what will he think of me?"

                "That you are a flawed human being like everyone else?"

                "Exactly. We are not like everyone one else, we represent something. We can't let ourselves be perceived as equals to them. Castiel, you will never succeed in our world with attitudes like this."

                "And who says that's what I want? Maybe I want to take my own path and have a world of my own."

                "You can't turn your back on your family. You have to follow the plan that's all been laid out for us."

                "I'm not leaving the family, I just want to do something else with my life than what others decided before I was even born. If Dad can manage the business by himself, why couldn't Michael and you be enough? Why shouldn't we be allowed to make our own choices?"

                "You sound exactly like Luke. Must be why he likes you so much."

                "I am nothing like Luke. He brings this up on purpose, he seeks conflict. I don't want us to fight. I want to stay out of it, like Gabriel."

                They both froze at the name. It was the first time anyone brought it up in casual conversation since their brother died. They shared a brief look, then Raphael went back to watch the road and Castiel stared out the window. They stayed silent for the remainder of the trip.

                Lunch went smoothly, though there was a strange vibe due to Luke's absence. Michael had made it clear that he wouldn't accept his brother showing up and Luke only accepted to stay away for lunch because Chuck agreed with his oldest son. Eve insisted he still came to dinner with all the guests though. After his argument in the car with Raphael, Castiel felt out of place with his siblings, seeing how the other ones sharing his opinion weren't there. He decided it was better for him to stay with his cousins while they waited for the guests to arrive. The Miltons and him were put on door duty, because Eve believed it to be too impersonal to have random employees welcome people into their home. So they sat all four of them, with two maids who were in charge of taking coats from guests, in the entrance hall all afternoon, taking turns to open the doors and greet friends.

                The bell hadn't rung in half an hour and they were all glad. They weren't only bored with the task, they hated the forcefulness of the interaction that came every time they welcomed someone into their home. They each dreaded the moment when their turn came and, for once, they wished they could go mingle rather than sit there waiting. Four was fast approaching and Balthazar had his eyes glued on the clock. Eve said at this time they would have to join the party and be relieved of this job. Anna and Castiel were in the middle of a game of battleship when a new set of guests arrived.

                "Why aren't any of you getting up? Didn't you hear the bell ring?" Gadreel asked.

                "Cause it's your turn, brother." Anna spoke right before making her move and finally sinking Castiel's aircraft carrier.

                "It can't be."

                "I'm telling you it is, Castiel went last time. Hurry, mom'll get mad if those people ring a second time."

                Gadreel closed his book and opened the door.

                "Hi, welcome to our home, hem, I'm sorry, who are you?"

                "I'm Dean Winchester, I'm a friend of Castiel's, is he here?"

                "Oh, nice to meet you, I'm his cousin, Gadreel Milton." He started walking back to the bench. "Castiel, your friend's here. You better go show him around, you'll never beat Anna and we're almost done here anyway."

                Castiel looked up and a smile brightened his face when he saw Dean. He admitted to Anna she defeated him and joined the newcomers.

                "Hello, Dean. Hi, Sam. Nice of you to come. Is this the rest of your family?"

                "Yeah. Bobby took Sammy and me in when we were kids. This is Bobby's wife, Ellen, and her daughter, Jo."

                Dean made a vague sign toward each of them as he named them and they all nodded to Castiel when he looked at them. He thought they seemed like a nice family.

                "Nice to meet you all."

                "Castiel, have you seen Ruby? She said her and her brother were also coming." Sam enquired.

                "Yeah, they got here a while ago. She must be around somewhere."

                "I better go find her then. Talk to you later."

                Dean and Castiel exchanged a look as Sam left. Neither of them was happy about Crowley and Ruby being there, but Luke had invited them and there was nothing they could do about it.

                Castiel showed them around the house, as it was Bobby and Ellen's first visit and Dean didn't get to see much of it at the funeral. They ended the tour in the living room where Chuck and Eve were entertaining guests. Castiel introduced them to Dean's adoptive parents and, as a discussion started, both young men decided to go off on their own.

                They walked in silence for a while, mostly enjoying how muffled the party sounded when you ventured in the empty hallways of the second floor.

                "You said Bobby took you in when you were a kid. What happened to your parents?"

                Dean looked down and Castiel immediately regretted the question.

                "I'm sorry, this was too personal, you don't have to answer."

                "No, it's okay. I'm just not used to talking about it."

                Dean took a deep breath and continued.

                "My mom died in a fire when I was four. After that, my dad started drinking a lot and he was an awful drunk."

                Pause. Dean didn't actually say the words, but Castiel could sense from his expression what he was implying. Dean had been abused.

                "Anyway, my dad would drop Sammy and I at Bobby's every once in a while, so he could go do god knows what. One day, my dad went to pick us up, but Bobby asked him to leave and come back only when he'd be back on his feet and they got in a huge fight. In the end, my dad agreed to go away until he was better. We haven't seen him since."

                "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't know how hard your life has been."

                "It's okay, everything turned out alright, didn't it? But I'm glad I shared that with you. I want you to know me, all of me."

                Castiel didn't think. Dean was talking about personal stuff, something he never did, and he was saying how he liked doing that with Cas? Castiel just felt so happy all of a sudden. There was this warmth spreading inside him as he stared in Dean's eyes. He acted on impulse. Everything in his body wanted to be closer to Dean. So, without thinking or considering whether it was a good idea, Castiel just grabbed Dean's neck and kissed him.

                Their lips had barely touched when Dean roughly pushed Castiel away and let himself slide against the wall until he was sitting on the floor. He looked distraught, his breathing sounded heavy and he didn't seem able to stay still. Castiel watched him put his arms over his head, then look up at the ceiling, then again hide his face with his hands, only to finally raise his head and the green eyes met the blues through Dean's fingers.

                "Cas, I'm sorry." Dean took his hands off his face before continuing. "I didn't mean to react like this. You just took me completely by surprise. I really didn't expect this and-"

                "It's okay, I understand. You don't feel this way about me."

                Dean let out a sigh.

                "No, you don't understand. I do feel this way about you. I'm crazy about you, Cas, I have been for months."

                Dean sounded almost angry and Castiel couldn't see why.

                "If you had just let me finish what I was saying, Cas, I didn't expect you to do something like this. You took me by surprise and I... I can't... I'm sorry, I've never really discussed this before. I have trouble with people touching me without a warning. I've been through hard shit and I'm better now, but you're just gonna have to give me a head's up next time, okay?"

                Castiel was frozen in place. He didn't know what to say. How could he have been so clueless? Why didn't he just ask if he could kiss him? He'd been so stupid.

                "Cas?"

                Dean stood up and walked up to Castiel.

                "It's okay, Cas, really I'm fine. I was just surprised, that's all. But I like you, I really like you."

                Slowly, Dean leaned down and put his lips on Castiel's. It was a gentle kiss, but full of all those months that had led up to it, all those months they'd waited for this moment because they were afraid they were too broken for a relationship. They were done waiting now. They would do whatever it took for this to work. They were ready to get through it all, together.


	5. From Me To You

                Cas and Dean were interrupted by Luke and Crowley who were trying to make it to Luke's old bedroom.

                "Sorry, we didn't realize we were blocking the way." Dean apologised.

                There was a brief moment where Castiel and Crowley shared a look, acknowledging the awkwardness of the situation, then Luke dragged his boyfriend forward. Dean took Castiel's hand and they went back to the living room.

                "Dean, did you know Eve breeds farm animals for a living? Apparently it's all a question of matching the animals with the right attributes with each other to create stronger specimens to insure the farmer has the best herd he could have. Fascinating, isn't it?"

                "I'm sorry this is so boring for you, Jo." Dean replied, seemingly catching on a subtle note of sarcasm Castiel hadn't noticed.

                "Like hell you are. You left me alone with them, where did you go?"

                "Why didn't you try getting to know Castiel's cousins? They're a little older, but I've heard great things about them."

                "Screw you, Winchester. You just came here to make out with that suspiciously handsome guy and brought us along cause you felt guilty about missing Thanksgiving. You are unbelievable."

                Jo went back into the crowd in a flash of golden hair.

                "So, that was my adoptive sister. Lovely, isn't she?"

                "She has a point though." A voice came behind them. "I mean, you did bring your family here and then abandoned them all to go kiss my cousin. I'm Anna, by the way."

                "I... We were alone in that hallway! How does everyone know already?"

                While Dean seemed alarmed, Castiel was perfectly calmed. He was used to those gatherings. Nothing ever stayed secret long in the Shurley home.

                "Luke saw us. He probably told someone and it spread."

                "So, Crowley and him were in that big of a hurry to go screw, but he still had time to gossip?"

                "It takes about two seconds to send a text, you know." Anna stated. "Anyway, I'll do your job, Dean is it, and go keep company to your sister. I also have two brothers, we have some things in common, I'm sure we'll get along great. Plus, I really don't have enough girl friends."

                "Oh, well, thanks."

                "You're welcome."

                Anna left in the same direction Jo did minutes earlier and Dean turned to Castiel.

                "Your family is nice."

                "You're going to regret saying that later."

                Everyone was called to dinner not long after and, as Castiel predicted, Dean got to meet the less enjoyable members of the Shurley family. Michael spent the entire meal asking him questions and saying Dean hardly fit in with them, wondering out loud what Castiel could possibly find in him. He even made a comment about how much more of a suitable choice in boyfriends Crowley had been. Finally, as they were all waiting for dessert to be served and Raphael joined Michael, saying dating Dean was just a way to separate himself from the family, Castiel rose in anger.

                "Why do you keep doing that? Why won't you let us all do what we want, Michael? Isn't our happiness important at all?"

                He took a short pause to breath and turned toward Chuck.

                "And, dad, why do you take their side? You all think you're doing what's best for our family by trying to force us to go in the business too, but you are not. Look at it properly. Michael and Luke can't be in a room together without fighting. Luke barely even comes to these things now. All the arguing drove Gabriel away. You can try to pretend all you want that all was well, because he still came to family gatherings and you don't want to remember anything bad related to him, but it isn't true. When he died, how long had it been since you or Michael or Raphael even talked to him? And you don't seem to have any regrets about this."

                Words got caught in Castiel's throat and there was silence for a moment, as no one else dared interrupt him now.

                "The best one of us, the happiest, the most joyful one died, and you don't care. If you did, if you had any regrets about how bad your relationship with him was, you wouldn't do the same mistake with me. I don't want to cut myself off from this family, but I can't stand all of this anymore. The big plans we absolutely have to follow, how we should behave ourselves, what kind of people we should date. I want to make my own choices. I want us all to be able to choose our own path. Why can't you understand that?"

                Castiel looked down and took a deep breath.

                "I'm leaving. Call me when you're finally ready to accept my decision. Dean, are you coming?"

                Dean nodded and they both left the table. Bobby, Ellen, Jo and Sam followed close behind. They were almost at the door when Castiel realized something.

                "I don't have a car. Raphael drove me here. What am I doing? I have no way to leave."

                "It's okay, I'll drive you."

                "We can't all fit in the impala."

                "I know, but we came with two cars. Sam can get a ride back in Bobby's and Baby and I will get you home, alright?"

                "I guess."

                Castiel took place by Dean in the impala. The ride was silent and when they stopped in front of Castiel's building, neither of them moved. They just sat there watching snow fall quietly. After a while, Dean thought he should say something, but he didn't know what so he just went with the first thing that came to his mind.

                "You know, I've never actually seen the inside of your apartment. Why is that?"

                "Why don't I even know where you live?"

                "That's not true, I must've mentioned it."

                "You didn't. And now that I think about it, that's kinda weird."

                "Fine, I'll show you."

                Dean turned the key and started the engine again.

                "Now?"

                "Why not? You're not busy."

                They drove to the sound of classic rock music. Dean sang along and Castiel stared at him. He had never seen anything so beautiful. Sure, his new boyfriend sang off-key, but his passion for it and the smile of genuine happiness on his face was heart-warming to watch.

                "Here we are, let's go." Dean exclaimed as he parked the car.

                "Isn't that the back of your pizzeria?"

                "Yeah, my apartment's upstairs."

                If there was one thing Castiel would've never expected to see when Dean opened the door, it was a Christmas wonderland, especially on Thanksgiving. The entire apartment was completely decorated for the holidays. There were lights all around, the tree was all done in a corner, an entire village expended across the living room and an electric train rolled around between the rooms. It looked magical. Castiel turned to Dean, who seemed just as taken aback as he was.

                "Oh. I'm sorry, Cas. It wasn't like that when I left. I wouldn't have brought you here if I'd known there was barely any space to walk."

                "You didn't do this?"

                "Of course not. I don't even own most of this stuff. And Thanksgiving isn't even over!"

                "Okay. Is it weird that I'm a bit confused about this whole thing?"

                "What? Oh right. I forgot to tell you. One of my friends got back from living abroad yesterday and she needed a place to crash for a while."

                "Dean, is that you? Why are you back so early?" A red-headed woman asked as she came out of what seemed to be a bedroom. "Oh, you're not alone."

                "Charlie, this is Castiel Shurley. Cas, Charlie Bradbury."

                "So, you're the famous Castiel he kept telling me about in his emails! Nice to finally meet you. "

                Castiel smiled and they shook hands.

                "Charlie, what did you do to my apartment?"

                "I was bored so I decorated it a bit. It'll get you in the holiday spirit. Don't you think it looks nice, Castiel?"

                "It's a little too much, but still pretty. Maybe we could move some of it downstairs, it would be perfect for the pizzeria."

                "I guess, we'll decorate the restaurant this year. I can't win if you're ganging up on me. But tomorrow, I just want to hang out tonight, watch a movie or something. What do you think, Cas?"

                "A movie sounds perfect. Charlie, are you gonna watch it with us?"

                "No, I promised Dorothy I'd see her tonight. I'll just get out of your way."

                Charlie gave Dean a hug and left. The two men snuggled into Dean's bed to watch Star Wars, but Castiel fell asleep an hour into it. It had been a long exhausting day after all.

 

* * *

 

 

                A month passed. After the semester ended, Castiel moved in with Dean. Some people thought it was too early because they'd only been going out for a few weeks, but it just felt right. They had known each other for over a year now and there was always this thing between them, this bond nobody could explain. Circumstances had kept them apart for months, otherwise they would have gotten together way earlier. So, when Benny started mentioning how Lenore and him wanted to get a place together, Dean and Castiel talked and decided it would work out great for everyone if Cas left the apartment he was sharing with Benny to go live over the pizzeria.

                They spent Christmas apart, each with their family. The Shurleys tried to work things out the best they could. Chuck put his foot down and said all he wanted was harmony and for everyone to be happy. He asked Michael and Raphael to back off and let the others make their own decisions. There was still some tension between the siblings, but it wasn't the kind of things that could be resolved that easily. Eve let her hand rest on her husband's shoulder while he spoke. It looked like more than a simple sign of agreement, more support than the situation required. Castiel couldn't explain this, or why Michael and Luke were so keen to make peace when their father asked.

                Castiel learned the truth a few months later. Eve called him from the hospital. His father had been brought there after collapsing and he didn't have long left to live, a couple hours at most. Dean drove Castiel there as fast as he could. There they learned Chuck had been diagnosed with terminal cancer just before Gabriel died, but didn't want to add even more to everyone's grief. They'd announced it at Thanksgiving, but Castiel was already gone and they all agreed it was for the best. Castiel yelled. He couldn't believe this. And then Dean calmed him down, telling him this was his last chance to say goodbye to Chuck and there would be time to be angry later.

                Chuck took his last breath in March. Eve left the mansion to their children and moved to South America where her brothers were. She simply couldn't handle being around this place anymore, not with the ghosts of Gabriel and Chuck haunting her wherever she looked in the big empty house. Michael took rein of the family business and came back to live in the Shurley mansion. Luke followed his mother. He had always gotten along better with her side of the family. Raphael stayed home and became Michael's vice-president. As for Castiel, he finished this last semester and went on a road trip across country with Dean for the summer. Jo covered for her step-brother at the pizzeria, appreciating the change from Ellen's bar. The couple came back in September and settled in to a new routine of life as Castiel started teaching history at the local high school.

                The road had been bumpy for sure, but it looked like everything was starting to come together. Sam had finally ended things with Ruby at the beginning of the summer and he seemed to be doing better. He was working at the comic book store with Balthazar and had started college, where he met a history of arts' student who soon became his new girlfriend.

                New Year's Eve was a big day that year. Everyone gathered at the Shurley's mansion. Bobby, Ellen and Jo came with Ash and Kevin, both friends of the Winchesters. Sam brought Sarah, Charlie was accompanied by Dorothy. Eve and her brothers flew in from South America. Michael and Raphael were on their best behaviour, as was Luke, which it turned out was short for Lucifer, apparently Eve had been in a weird phase at the time. Of course, Crowley was Luke's date and it should've been awkward for him to be there, but it wasn't. The Miltons were, as usual, the ones who mingled with all the groups present.

                As it struck midnight, Dean and Castiel kissed under the mistletoe just after Gadreel declared : "I now pronounce you, husband and husband!"


End file.
